SAXTON B. LITTLE FREE LIBRARY
319 Route 87 Columbia, CT 06237
Phone: 860 228 0350 Fax: 860 228 1569 E-mail: staff@columbiactlibrary.org

Monday, Friday, Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Home Adult Services* Library Services Children's Corner Hot Spot (for Teens)

Home

About the Saxton B.

Library Board

Friends of the Library
(updated 4/08)

Online Library Catalog

iConn.org

Event Calendar

Contact Us

Library Passes

Links

Diary of Saxton B. Little

Comments

Saxton Reads! & Reviews

We invite the public to post reviews to our catalog by logging into our online catalog. Reviews will then be posted to this blog. Comments can be added to existing posts or may be added as separate reviews on our catalog
OCTOBER 25, 2011
What Inspired the Lyrics?
Do you ever wonder what inspired a song?

A few weekends ago I was poking around a small flea market. As it was small, I was able to really dig into one vendors offerings of Cd’s. I hit pay dirt with some compilations put out by Reader's Digest. I have several Reader's Digest offerings on old 33 1/3 rpm but hadn't even thought about replacing any with Cd’s until recent years.

I ended up buying several but the one I'm enjoying the most is The Late 50's: The Top 10 Collection. 3 of the 4 Cd’s feature the top10 ten hits starting in 1955 and working to 1959. The last spotlights, The Top 10 Guys, Girls and Golden Groups. For me it is a trip down nostalgia lane and is a great collection to listen to while doing something boring, like vacuuming.

I believe all songs have a story of their own to tell. The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane sung by The Ames Brothers in this set sparked my curiosity. If you've never heard it you can find it on Youtube and many other places on the web including my favorite music resource All Music. It's an upbeat harmony tune that suggests that the Naughty Lady is an attractive woman driving all the men of the town crazy with her flirtatious ways. The ending line reveals that “she's only nine days old.”. This has always given me a laugh. Listening to this oldie but goodie this time round, I couldn't help but wonder what inspired the lyrics.

A Wikipedia entry states Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett are the authors. They often collaborated together and had several hit including some for Elvis. Wikipedia states “between 1945 and 1970” Tepper and Bennett published over 300 songs. Whew. That's a lot of music.

I know that Naughty Lady was covered by The Ames Brothers, Dean Martin and others. I like the rendition by The Ames Brothers. They're easy to track down. One site

http://edames.net/ames_brothers.html

gives a good bio of the four, actually brothers, which according to the site is, "a rarity in the entertainment business". Though there's lots of great information about the quartet there's nothing about the words.

Librarian that I am, I did a further search on Sid and Roy and found some articles but nothing with a clue to answer my question. So if you know anything about this, please let me know.

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 23, 2011
This is Dedicated...

The School of NIght

Louis Bayard
Henry Holt & Company, c2010

For Mark H.

Now quit bugging me

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 20, 2011
Night Strangers ~ Chris Bohjalian
****comments by Carol K

Someone suggested to me that Chris Bohjalian's Night Strangers is a mystery, No, no, no, my pretty. It is horror, it is psychological terror, it is evil, it is creepy, it is raw and it is the perfect book to read as Halloween approaches. I'm not afraid, after all, I keep telling myself, this is only a book. So why are my nerves so taught. I'm as tense as a wound spring and I find myself gripping the book for dear life.

Bohjalian is a masterful storyteller, one who makes his characters so real, you'll feel like they are you friends, but believe me, in this case, you'll be glad that most of them are not. Some readers state the book begins slowly. It might, but I was hooked as soon as I read the prologue. I can see the comparisons that some are making to Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Ira Levin and if you're a fan of any of these, I think you'd enjoy Night Strangers. It's the best of this genre I've read in a long time.

Some are saying Night Strangers is unlike any of Bohjalian's other books. I don't agree. I see all of what attracted me in his other book. A well thought out, thoroughly researched, believable story, with psychological undertones, vivid descriptions of both characters and location and even twins which seem to show up frequently in his works and always are intriguing.

A brief summation of the plot, better explained by reviewers than I can, but here goes...

Respected Pilot Chip Linton's plane is the victim of geese and he has to ditch in Lake Champlain. Over in over in his mind he sees a successful resolution to his plight as he pictures the miraculous survival of passengers of the ill fated flight rescued by Chelsey Sullenberg whose plane met a similar fate on the Hudson in January of 2009. Not to be. A giant wave from one of the rescue ferries swamps Chip's landing and 39 of his passengers die. Suffering PTSD, Chip, his wife and twin daughters relocate from Pennsylvania to upper state New Hampshire to Bethel, a small community where they hope for a chance to shrug off the past of the ill fated crash and go on with their lives. Not to be. Let's just say there's some strange happenings going on here. I love the way Bohjalian conjures up a tale blending the use of herbs, both medicinal and as potions, the greenhouses where they grow,  the folklore of witches and covens in New England, damaged souls, the forces of good and evil to create a superior story that leaves us breathless.

I'd rather not tell you much more. Just read it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

A side note: I'd really like to thank Norm Hyer for adopting Chris Bohjalian in our library. Norm's generosity, like others who have adopted an author, increases what we can offer for the enjoyment of all of our readers.

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 17, 2011
The Missing Person's Guide to Love ~ Susanna Jones
***
comments by CarolK

What an absolute quirky little book! I wish I could recall where or where I picked this paperback up. I discovered it on my bookshelves when looking for a book to jam in my pocket for a recent vaation. The cover though not striking in itself, somehow drew me in. I loved the title and liked that it was about a missing girl, 15 year old Julia, who vanishes without a trace. Her childhood friend Isabel has never given up hope of finding out just what happened to Julia. Many years go by and Isabel returns home for the funeral of another school chum, Owe. Isabel is determined to find the answer to Julia's disappearance once and for all.

The story is mostly told from Isabel's pov and can be hard to follow as time shifts from present to past and back yet again. Perhaps it was not the best book for a vacation where my concentration was distracted. I found myself lost at time and re-reading passages more than once.

All in all The Missing Person's Guide to Love was satisfying enough and it took me quite some time to figure out the what, as in "what is going on".

The cover has a promotion from Elle stating "Exquisitely written yet utterly chilling, this will keep you gripped from start to finish; a potential book-group classic". I'm not certain I quite agree but certainly, see for yourself.

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 16, 2011
This is Dedicated...
I'll Walk Alone
Mary Higgins Clark
Simon & Schuster, c.2011


In memory of Reverend Joseph A. Kelly, S.J.
1931-2008

Always a twinkle in this Jesuit's eye
Always a smile on his handsome face
Always faith and compassion overflowing his soul
He was the stuff of which saints are made
When all heaven protested his absence
His Creator called him home

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 14, 2011
Crime Writers of America Dagger Awards
The Crime Writers of America announced this year's Dagger Awards on October 7th at Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards held this evening at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel.

The winners are:
The CWA Gold Dagger: Tom Franklin Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter (Macmillan)
The CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger: Steve Hamilton The Lock Artist (Orion)
The CWA John Creasey Dagger: S.J. Watson Before I Go To Sleep (Doubleday)

For once, I've read all three. It's hard to pick my favorite but I'd lean to Franklin's Crooked Letter. We own all 3 at Saxton B. and you can find my thoughts of each on our Saxton Reads Blog, GoodReads account or our catalog.

Poke around a bit on The Crime Writers site and you'll find out what other books won awards this year including those for non-fiction and debut novels.

We're always interested in your thoughts on books. If you've read any of these let us know.

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

OCTOBER 12, 2011
Up the Downstairs Writer turns 100
JudyM sent me this great article about Bel Kaufman, teacher and author of Up the Down Staircase. The artilce,  At 100, Still a Teacher, and Quite a Character by Joseph Berger, appeared in The New York Times May 11, 2011 and is worth taking the time to read.

Have you read the book? I haven't but reading the article makes we want to add it my list.

Add a comment  (0 comments) posted by CarolK

-------------------------------------------------------

Subscribe via RSS
Search

Categories